What is Xiaohongshu, Chinese app that tops US download charts after TikTok’s exit? | World news

Some of the so-called “TikTok refugees” claim that the TikTok replacement, a Chinese app, is widely used in the absence of TikTok.

Here’s what you should know about Xiaohongshu:

This lifestyle social media app has features like live streaming and shopping in addition to letting users upload short videos, photos and messages.

As “refugees” from the well-known short-form video platform TikTok flocked to a Chinese social media site to protest a likely ban on the service, a rare wave of US-China solidarity emerged online.

They were met with surprise, curiosity and in-jokes on Xiaohongshu – literally “Little Red Book” – whose users saw English-language posts take over feeds almost overnight, as reported of AP news.

Americans used the hashtags “TikTok refugees,” “ask me anything” and “cat tax” to identify themselves. They also posted pictures of their pets.

It is a rare case of direct communication between two virtual worlds often separated by business borders, language barriers and China’s strict internet censorship policies, which prevent access to almost all global media and social media platforms.

Read also: TikTok goes dark in the US; disappears from Apple, Google app stores

Why are Americans downloading a Chinese app?

Since China’s “Great Firewall” blocks world-famous sites like Instagram and X, Chinese and American users are rarely in the same online spaces. Users in China are blocked by TikTok, which instead directs them to Douyin, its onshore network.

However, others began moving to Xiaohongshu as the deadline for a rule that would ban TikTok in the United States from January 19, which is located in China, approached.

“When they tell us you can’t have a Chinese app anymore, we go straight to another Chinese app,” said Katie Lawson, a farmer in Tulsa, Oklahoma, who has posted videos of her chickens and saved many recipes from the app . “We will explore that country and their values ​​ourselves. We will go straight to the source.”

How is Xiaohongshu different from TikTok?

TikTok, is an international app whose users and content are isolated from those of its Chinese equivalent, Douyin, while it is owned by a Chinese parent company.

The vast majority of Xiaohongshu’s 300 million monthly active users are Chinese, to the point where several sections of its interface are not available in English.

One of the fastest growing applications in China, it is known for its welcoming environment and emphasis on peer-to-peer guidance and user ratings. Long-term users include foreign superstars such as Mariah Carey and Maye Musk, Elon Musk’s mother. In 2018, Kim Kardashian became a member of the app.

How many Americans have joined Xiaohongshu?

The software has risen to the top of the free download charts on both iOS and Android, where it has remained for days without the company revealing official statistics.

Read also: TikTok tells users it will be ‘temporarily unavailable’ in the US on Sunday

There are approximately 24 million posts on the network with two variations of the TikTok refugees hashtag, and many users’ feeds have relevant posts near the top.

What are people discussing?

A large number of US users say they have received a warm welcome from the #TikTokrefugee community. “Welcome the Global Villagers” remains the most popular topic on Xiaohongshu with 8.9 million views on Thursday.

Notes on food expenses, rent, health insurance, medical expenses and the son-in-law-daughter relationship are compared by users from both nations. In two nations, parents discuss what their children learn at school. Some have already established a community by joining book clubs.

Chinese users taught Americans what sensitive themes and key phrases are to escape censorship on the app after American users inquired about how Chinese people view the LGBTQ community and were informed that it was among sensitive topics.

What answer does the Chinese government give?

The protest against the ban has been welcomed by Chinese official media, which has consistently rejected US charges against TikTok.

The People’s Daily, China’s largest national newspaper, said in an op-ed on TikTok refugees on Thursday that the TikTok refugees found a “new home” and “openness, communication and mutual learning are the unchanging themes of humanity and the fervent desires of people from all countries.”